Sometimes God, sometimes music, sometimes other stuff.
2 Peter 3 seems as relevant as ever.
It isn't enough to avoid the wrong things (empty and sweep the house). In order to really live the abundant life we are designed to crave, we have to "fill the house."The question I keep considering over and over is, "How do we do that?"
People don't do what's most logical, we do what we believe will make us feel good. Science, psychology, and marketing all verify this, and it makes us often confused by our own choices and the choices of others.How do we leverage this insight for our thriving?How does this impact our approach to God and inviting others to the life of faith?
"The tongue is connected to the heart!" (Theresa said that during the chat.)James 3 provided the context of this Whiteboard session.
What matters most? This chat is about the bullseye of the target and what we tend to get sidetracked by instead.(Based on the parable of the good samaritan in Luke 10).
John 15:4-5 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
An easter message from Romans 5."For if, while we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!" (Rom 5:10)
"As Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life."John 3:14-15
The master of the banquet tasted the good wine, but didn't know where it came from. He completely missed both the miracle and the divine love it revealed. How often do we do that?
The Lord Almighty fights for us.Therefore teach usto fight with weapons of light, not carnal weaponsthe way of the cross, not the way of the swordto bless and not curse (Rom 12:14),to give thanks and not grumble.As we suffer injustice, following Jesus,we entrust ourselves to our Faithful Creatorand continue to do good. (1 Peter 4:19)Pain and pleasure come and go, but God remains. So today I intend to meet all pain with tenderness and meet all pleasure with open hands.
Coming home to God also entails coming home to yourself and returning to what you've neglected and misused, learning from Jesus the art of really living.
Don't avoid it. Don't get stuck in it. Go through.5 What joy for those whose strength comes from the Lord, who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. 6 When they walk through the Valley of Weeping, it will become a place of refreshing springs. The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings. 7 They will continue to grow stronger, and each of them will appear before God in Zion.(Psalm 84:5-7)
This chat centers around the concept of how transformation happens, which is by gazing upon the beauty of God seen in the face of Jesus. 2 Corinthians 4 was the main text.
Our Father in heaven,Reveal who you are.Set the world right;Do what's best— as above, so below.Keep us alive with three square meals.Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.You're in charge!You can do anything you want!You're ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes.'
...about Jesus always leading us in triumph, the aroma of Christ, and then I chat a bit about who exactly this gospel is for based on Isaiah 61.
I'm a blessed man. My future is bright. My best days are ahead. I'm the beloved of God...
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. 15 Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. 16 For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind.17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. (James 3:13-17 NRS)
James 5:13-20 New Revised Standard13 Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. 14 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.17 Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest.19 My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, 20 you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner's soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
A.K.A. "Adversity can wreck our faith." That's why we need each other! This chat is based on some of Paul's thoughts in 1 Thessalonians chapters 2 and 3.
Isaiah 9, wintertime blues, 75 inch tv, dollar store candy, and more. It's a Christmas chat.
This was two separate topics we chatted about at last night's Wednesday Whiteboard.
Luke 15:1-2 Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. 2 This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them!
I spent the week in the mountains of Costa Rica with young people doing inner healing work. It's always an intense and special time. And it is also so good to have a grace community to come home to.
What gets my attention is more important to who I become than what happens to me.
What is your conscience?Does it always line up with God's truth?How can we line it up?What are some religious approaches to a defiled conscience?What about religious approaches to a clean conscience?What are some gospel solutions to deal with a defiled conscience?How is conviction different than condemnation?How is an orphan spirit different from the Spirit of Adoption?What's a hyperactive conscience?What's a seared conscience?
What perfectionism isn't. What it is. What kinds of things it says. And some things that might work better for us, such as..."Done is better than perfect.""Just keep moving.""We ain't building no piani." (Acceptable tolerances)
Do I fit in? Do I belong? If they really knew me, would they really love me?
12 Take care, brothers and sisters, that none of you may have an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today," so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.14 For we have become partners of Christ, if only we hold our first confidence firm to the end. (Heb 3:12-14 NRS)
This is the first time anyone was so tall we could barely fit them in the baptismal tub! lol what!? :)
I wrote this for me, but thought I'd share in case others find it helpful.
What is it that God most wants from and FOR you and me?
"A bruised reed he will not break and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out."
I'm loved by God as is.I trust God as is.My life is blessed as is.I love others as is.
Problems don't mean you lack faith.Pain might be helpful.What really brings us to God?We all have feet of clay.Is following Jesus incompatible with military service?Loyal or just complacent?Trauma can shift our worldview.
"No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father." (John 10:18)
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now after carefully weighing the facts, I see them as worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.For Jesus' sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as dung, as filth, as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him.I no longer depend on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through trust in Christ. God's righteousness is by faith.10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, 11 so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!12 I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached the goal. But I press on to firmly lay hold of that end goal for which Christ Jesus first firmly took hold of me.13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.14 I press on to reach the finish line of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.(Phil 3:5-14 Tim's translation)
Don't stuff your tears.Don't dump your tears.Sow your tears.
In the midst of our pain, God doesn't merely send answers. He sends love in the flesh to be with us.This chat is about embodied pain, love, and spirituality centering on the meaning of the incarnation and the cross.
This is a guided meditation on loss and the restoration of hope based on Ezekiel 37.
At the core of our faith is forgiveness, with a view to restoring true heart to heart intimacy with God.
Here are some books that shaped my faith in Christ and why I find them helpful.
In a disposable world where we discard and replace, the gospel brings us a Father who is willing to put in the work to restore us because of our value.So what's the measure of your worth? The cross. You are worth the blood of Jesus.
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